Homemade Pizza-A Labor of Love

Once again the weekend is here and I had a craving for pizza. Only, I wanted to have something more gourmet in flavor and less processed. Well as the saying goes, “When you want something done right, do it yourself”. So I made my pizza from scratch starting from the dough to the sauce. The only way this would have been better is if I grew the toppings myself…LOL Anyway, this pizza was a labor of love so if you are going to attempt to make it be prepared to devote an hour or two to the process. If you want to save time by using a ready made dough and a jar sauce feel free to do so. I am all for whatever works. To find out this delicious recipe, click here.

Pizza Dough

1 1/2 cups regular whole wheat flour

1/2 cup white flour

1 tsp garlic powder

2 tsp baking powder

3/4 cup water

1/4 cup olive oil

Preheat oven to 350. Combine all ingredients together in a bowl and knead by hand in bowl for about 2 minutes. Place onto baking sheet and press out into desired shape (thinner crust works better for this recipe). Bake for 5-10 minutes (depending on how thick it is). Take it out, add sauce and toppings, then bake for another 10-15 minutes, or until toppings are cooked and edges of crust are lightly browned.

Pizza Sauce

½ can of tomato paste

½ cup of water

2 teaspoons of cane sugar

1 teaspoon of cayenne pepper

1 teaspoon of Sriracha sauce

2 teaspoon of garlic powder

½ teaspoon of sea salt

Mix ingredients together in a bowl and set aside until it is time to put on top of the pizza dough.

Raw Cashew Cheese

1 1/2 cups raw cashews

1 lemon

2-3 Tbsp nutritional yeast

1/2tsp-3/4tsp sea salt

Soak cashews anywhere from 2 hours to overnight. When you are ready to make the cheese, drain off the water and rinse the cashews. Put the cashews in the blender along with the lemon, nutritional yeast and sea salt. Then blend until almost creamy. If you like your cheese to be a little more tart add 2 teaspoons of apple cider vinegar. Set it aside until it is time to place on top of the pizza dough.

Toppings

A sprig or two of fresh Basil

2 teaspoons of dried Oregano

1 medium Tomato-sliced

3 garlic cloves- minced

1 small onion-sliced

1 teaspoon of garlic powder for extra garlic flavor

4 handfuls of fresh spinach

Add toppings to pizza crust after adding the sauce and cheese. Drizzle the spinach with a little olive oil.

Then bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes or until the toppings are cooked enough to your liking.

Sprinkle with nutritional yeast for extra cheese flavor, then serve and enjoy! To take this mouth watering experience to a higher level, top the pizza with slices of buttery avocado, and more of the raw cashew cheese.

I am a plus sized woman who set out on a quest to become healthier. It was on this journey to better health, that I discovered the joy of veganism through the teachings of Queen Afua, Nubia Sutton, and Breeze Harper, PhD. Join me as I recreate some of my pre-vegan favorites as well as the new vegan dishes I now enjoy.